Hailey Pundick

Marina Abramovic – The Artist is Present

1. What are some of your first impressions of Marina Abramovic’s performance works, based on the documentary? Use an image/example of one or two works to describe aspects you admire, and aspects you might agree are problematic?

I think that the first thing I thought of while watching the documentary was that Abramovic is a force to be reckoned with. She seems like a very determined artist who is prepared to live and die for her craft. I find that there is a power in being able to make your audience uncomfortable. A couple of examples of performances that stuck out to me was “Rest Energy”. This was the performance with the bow and arrow. Abramovic stands in front of the bow, leaning back, while Ulay pulls back on the arrow. I thought that this showed a great sense of trust between the two, but also made my heart sink because of the possible dangers. Another performance is “Relation in Space”. For this, Abramovic and Ulay back up and continuously run into each other. They also happen to be naked. Although the human body is completely normal and natural, it is something that is not really seen. It is seen as a taboo in our society. I believe that this was meant to be uncomfortable, but as you watch, it becomes familiar. 

2. What have you learned about features of performance art based on Abramovic’s work? Name a few key features according to her examples. Include an image to illustrate. Consider her quote “When you perform it is a knife and your blood, when you act it is a fake knife and ketchup.”

When this quote was said, I immediately thought of the “Rhythm 10” performance. Abramovic had a selection of 20 knives laid out and would stab the spaces in between her fingers. Once cut, she would pick a different knife and continue the cycle. I thought of this for the most obvious reason. It was performed with real knives and she shed her own blood. The performance invokes feelings and thoughts that could only be made with the use of a real and authentic performance. Her performances all share a common aesthetic. They are all simple, little to no dialogue, and filmed for the most part in black and white.

3. Discuss the ways performance art resists many museum and commercial artworld conventions. How does Abramovic solve/negotiate some of these challenges, and do you find these  compromises add to, or undermine the ideas at play in her work?

I feel like performance art already breaks the boundaries of traditional museum spaces and the art world. Due to the demand of space and need for physical beings. I think that a great example of what the documentary is based around, “The Artist is Present”. Although Abramovic is sitting in her own space, there is also a separate space that includes projected videos and people who are recreating her previous artworks. The fact that most of her performances are recorded, allow for it to be played continuously.

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